List of Saiyuki characters

The protagonists of the Saiyuki series, (from left to right) Sha Gojyo, Cho Hakkai, Genjo Sanzo and Son Goku.

List of Saiyuki characters is a list of characters appearing in the Saiyuki manga series written and illustrated by Kazuya Minekura, its sequel series, and their anime adaptations. The series is loosely based on the Chinese novel Journey to the West, but uses a substantially different setting, characterization, mythology, and continuity.

The original manga was created by Kazuya Minekura and published by Ichijinsha through the Comic ZERO-SUM line. The franchise includes Saiyuki, Saiyuki Reload, Saiyuki Gaiden, and Saiyuki Reload Blast. The official Reload Blast publication describes it as the final chapter of the main Saiyuki series.

Main characters

Sanzo Party

The Sanzo Party is the principal group of protagonists. Its core members are Genjo Sanzo, Son Goku, Sha Gojyo, and Cho Hakkai. They travel westward toward Tenjiku while investigating the abnormal events affecting Togenkyo.

Genjo Sanzo

Main article: Genjo Sanzo

Genjo Sanzo (玄奘三蔵) is one of the principal protagonists of Saiyuki. He is the 31st Genjo Sanzo and one of the five highest-ranking Sanzo priests in Togenkyo. He possesses the Maten Scripture.

The official RELOAD -ZEROIN- character profile identifies Sanzo as 24 years old. It describes him as a Sanzo priest who has little interest in religious asceticism and who drinks, smokes, and gambles. He is nevertheless highly perceptive and charismatic, while generally being arrogant and abrasive.

Sanzo is the master and guardian of Son Goku and leads the group on its journey west.

In the RELOAD -ZEROIN- anime, Sanzo is voiced by Toshihiko Seki.

Son Goku

Main article: Son Goku (Saiyuki)

Son Goku (孫悟空) is one of the four principal protagonists.

The official character profile describes Goku as an existence born from a rock on Mount Kaka through concentrated energy from the earth. It explicitly distinguishes him from humans, yōkai, and gods. Goku is 19 years old and had been imprisoned in a stone cell for 500 years before being rescued by Sanzo.

His formal title is Seiten Taisei Son Goku. The golden ring on his forehead, the kō, is used to control his yōkai power. Goku is cheerful, straightforward, and possesses an enormous appetite.

Goku is voiced by Soichiro Hoshi in the Japanese version of RELOAD -ZEROIN-.

Sha Gojyo

Main article: Sha Gojyo (Saiyuki)

Sha Gojyo (沙悟浄) is one of the four principal protagonists.

Gojyo is 23 years old and is a half-human, half-yōkai. His birth is considered taboo in Togenkyo. The official profile characterizes him as a womanizer and flirt who nevertheless possesses a considerate and good-natured personality. He frequently quarrels with Goku.

Gojyo is voiced by Hiroaki Hirata in the Japanese RELOAD -ZEROIN- cast.

Cho Hakkai

Main article: Cho Hakkai

Cho Hakkai (猪八戒) is one of the four principal protagonists.

Hakkai is 23 years old. He was originally human but became a yōkai after killing one thousand yōkai in revenge and bathing in their blood. He generally avoids conflict and is calm and approachable, although the official profile emphasizes how frightening he becomes when angry.

Hakkai is voiced by Akira Ishida in the Japanese version of RELOAD -ZEROIN-.

Hakuryuu

Hakuryuu (白竜) is a dragon who travels with the Sanzo Party. He normally appears as a small white dragon and is also used as the group's means of transportation.

Hakuryuu is included among the principal characters of the RELOAD -ZEROIN- production and is voiced by Megumi Toda in the Japanese cast.

Kougaiji's group

Kougaiji

Kougaiji (紅孩児) is a powerful yōkai and one of the major recurring characters opposing the Sanzo Party.

He is the son of Gyumaoh and Rasetsunyo and the older half-brother of Lirin. He leads a group consisting of Yaone, Dokugakuji, and Lirin.

Kougaiji's actions are closely connected with the attempt to revive Gyumaoh and with the fate of his family.

Lirin

Lirin (李厘) is a young yōkai and the daughter of Gyumaoh and Gyokumen Koushou. She is Kougaiji's younger half-sister.

Lirin frequently accompanies Kougaiji and is characterized by her energetic and straightforward personality.

Yaone

Yaone (八百鼡) is a member of Kougaiji's group and serves as an apothecary and medical specialist.

She is highly loyal to Kougaiji and frequently acts as Lirin's caretaker. Her knowledge of medicine and explosives makes her an important support member of the group.

Dokugakuji

Dokugakuji (独角兕), formerly known as Sha Jien, is Kougaiji's bodyguard.

He is the elder half-brother of Sha Gojyo. The two brothers are frequently placed on opposing sides of the conflict between the Sanzo Party and Kougaiji's group.

Gyumaoh faction

Gyumaoh

Gyumaoh (牛魔王), the Ox King, is one of the most powerful yōkai in the setting.

His attempted resurrection is the central event underlying the abnormal phenomena that destabilize Togenkyo. The official anime introduction states that the negative waves produced by the Gyumaoh resurrection experiment cause yōkai to run wild and disrupt the balance of the land.

Gyumaoh is the father of Kougaiji and Lirin.

Gyokumen Koushou

Gyokumen Koushou (玉面公主) is a major yōkai associated with Gyumaoh and the resurrection project.

She uses the members of Gyumaoh's family and faction in pursuit of the resurrection plan.

Rasetsunyo

Rasetsunyo (羅刹女) is the wife of Gyumaoh and the mother of Kougaiji.

Her fate is connected with the conflict surrounding Gyumaoh and becomes an important part of Kougaiji's motivations.

Hazel's group

Hazel Grouse

Hazel Grouse (ヘイゼル＝グロース) is a priest and exorcist from a continent to the west of Togenkyo.

The official character profile describes Hazel as a foreigner who came to Togenkyo from a distant western continent. He is polite and refined in appearance but highly self-confident. His distinctive ability is a resurrection technique that uses yōkai souls to revive dead humans.

The official introduction states that Sanzo's group encounters Hazel and his servant Gat during their journey west.

Gat

Gat (ガト) is Hazel's servant and bodyguard.

The official profile identifies him as a dead man revived through Hazel's resurrection technique. He is quiet, absolutely obedient to Hazel, physically powerful, and highly agile. He fights with two pistols.

Gat is voiced by Rikiya Koyama in the Japanese version.

Sanzo priests

Koumyou Sanzo

Koumyou Sanzo (光明三蔵) was Genjo Sanzo's master and adoptive father and the previous holder of the Sanzo title.

The official profile states that Koumyou found the infant who would become Genjo Sanzo after the child had been washed down a river. He named him Jiangliu and raised him. Koumyou possessed both the Seiten and Maten Scriptures and was one of the highest-ranking Sanzo priests.

Koumyou died while protecting the young Genjo Sanzo from yōkai.

Saku Sanzo

Saku Sanzo (紗烙三蔵) is a Sanzo priest encountered by the Sanzo Party after reaching the western region.

Ichijinsha's official description of volume 1 of Saiyuki RELOAD BLAST states that the party finally reaches the western region, where they encounter another Sanzo priest, Saku, who possesses the Kouten Scripture.

Ukoku Sanzo

Ni Jianyi / Ukoku Sanzo

Ni Jianyi (你健一), also known as Ukoku Sanzo (烏哭三蔵), is a major antagonist.

The official character profile identifies Ni Jianyi as the only human living at Houtou Castle. Under the identity of Ni Jianyi, he participates as a scientist in the Gyumaoh resurrection experiment. His true identity is Ukoku Sanzo, one of the highest-ranking Sanzo priests. He possesses the Muten Scripture.

Ukoku's motivations are deliberately concealed and his behavior is described by the official profile as difficult to understand.

Heavenly characters

Konzen Douji

Konzen Douji (金蝉童子) is a high-ranking heavenly official and one of the principal characters of Saiyuki Gaiden.

He is the previous incarnation of Genjo Sanzo. The story of Saiyuki Gaiden takes place 500 years before the main story and begins when Son Goku is brought to Heaven.

Konzen becomes closely associated with Goku, Kenren Taisho, and Tenpou Gensui during the events of Gaiden.

Kenren Taisho

Kenren Taisho (捲簾大将) is a military officer in Heaven and one of the main characters of Saiyuki Gaiden.

He is the previous incarnation of Sha Gojyo and is closely connected to Konzen and Tenpou.

Tenpou Gensui

Tenpou Gensui (天蓬元帥) is a high-ranking military officer in Heaven.

He is the previous incarnation of Cho Hakkai and is one of the central characters of Saiyuki Gaiden.

Goujun

Goujun (敖潤) is a high-ranking heavenly figure associated with the Dragon Kings and the events of Saiyuki Gaiden.

He is connected with the heavenly military structure in which Kenren and Tenpou serve.

Nataku Taishi

Nataku Taishi (哪吒太子) is a powerful war god in Heaven.

His story is closely connected with Goku and the political and military structure of Heaven. He is an important figure in the events of Saiyuki Gaiden.

Kanzeon Bosatsu

Kanzeon Bosatsu (観世音菩薩) is a major deity associated with Heaven.

Kanzeon is involved in the events surrounding the Sanzo Party and the heavenly characters. The official RELOAD -ZEROIN- introduction identifies Kanzeon as the heavenly figure who orders Sanzo to stop the Gyumaoh resurrection experiment.

Cho Gonou and Cho Kanan

Cho Gonou

Cho Gonou (猪悟能) is the former human identity of Cho Hakkai.

His past is central to the character's transformation into Hakkai. The story of Gonou is explored through the backstory of the main manga and its adaptations.

Cho Kanan

Cho Kanan (花南) was Cho Gonou's twin sister.

The events involving Kanan and Gonou form an important part of Hakkai's backstory and explain the circumstances that lead to Gonou becoming a yōkai.

Homura's group

Homura Taishi

Homura Taishi (焔太子) is a heavenly war god associated primarily with the anime-original storyline.

His storyline places him in conflict with the existing heavenly order and with the Sanzo Party.

Zenon

Zenon is a heavenly warrior associated with Homura.

He is principally associated with the anime's Homura storyline.

Shien

Shien is a heavenly warrior associated with Homura.

His character is primarily developed in the anime storyline involving Homura and Nataku.

Reincarnations

Several major characters in the main storyline are connected to characters who lived in Heaven 500 years earlier.

Present character	Heavenly predecessor
Genjo Sanzo	Konzen Douji
Sha Gojyo	Kenren Taisho
Cho Hakkai	Tenpou Gensui

The previous-generation story is principally told in Saiyuki Gaiden, which Ichijinsha describes as taking place 500 years before Saiyuki Reload and beginning with Goku's arrival in Heaven.

Saiyuki RELOAD BLAST

Saiyuki RELOAD BLAST continues the main story after the group's long journey and moves the setting into the western region.

Volume 1 introduces Saku Sanzo, another Sanzo priest who possesses the Kouten Scripture. Ichijinsha describes the volume as the beginning of the final chapter of the main Saiyuki series.

Anime adaptation

The television anime Saiyuki RELOAD -ZEROIN- was produced by LIDENFILMS. Its official website credits Kazuya Minekura and Ichijinsha as the original work's rights holders.

The official website lists 13 episodes for the series.

The anime began broadcasting in January 2022.

Anime-original and adaptation material

The official episode summaries provide additional information about events adapted or presented in the anime.

Episode 7, for example, depicts Goku suffering a severe injury and the removal of his golden ring by Gojyo and Hakkai in order to release his Seiten Taisei power.

Episode 10 explores Hazel's past and the death of his teacher, as well as his relationship with Gat.

Episode 12 centers on Ukoku's attack and the Muten Scripture, while Hazel is confronted with additional information about his past.

Episode 13 concludes the television series' confrontation involving Ukoku and Hazel.

Voice cast

Character	Japanese voice actor
Genjo Sanzo	Toshihiko Seki
Son Goku	Soichiro Hoshi
Sha Gojyo	Hiroaki Hirata
Cho Hakkai	Akira Ishida
Hazel Grouse	Koichi Tochika
Gat	Rikiya Koyama
Hakuryuu	Megumi Toda
Ni Jianyi / Ukoku Sanzo	Hochu Otsuka
Koumyou Sanzo	Mitsuru Miyamoto

The names and Japanese cast are taken from the official staff-and-cast page for Saiyuki RELOAD -ZEROIN-.

Official guidebooks

Ichijinsha published official guide and supplementary books for the anime adaptations.

The TV Anime Saiyuki RELOAD BLAST Official Prelude Book was published in June 2017. The publisher describes it as containing character-setting material, cast comments, staff interviews, and interviews with the principal cast members.

The official Saiyuki RELOAD -ZEROIN- Official Fanbook was published by Ichijinsha in April 2022 and includes character introductions, a story retrospective, art and prop settings, corrected key animation, and staff and cast interviews.

External links

• Official Studio Pierrot Saiyuki Reload website (in Japanese)
• Official TV Tokyo Saiyuki Reload Gunlock website (in Japanese)
• Official Studio Pierrot Gensomaden Saiyuki website Archived April 16, 2014, at the Wayback Machine (in Japanese)
• Official Studio Pierrot Gensomaden Saiyuki: Requiem For the One Not Chosen website Archived March 30, 2014, at the Wayback Machine (in Japanese)
• Official TV Tokyo Gensomaden Saiyuki website (in Japanese)
• Official TV Anime Saiyuki Reload -ZEROIN- website (in Japanese)
• 'Saiyuki' (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia